Of Dead Fire and Dragon Dreams
by Chickadeechickadoo
Summary: Ozai tells Zuko he killed Iroh. When Ozai shot lightning at Zuko- it came back. Zuko is Firelord. Everyone is confused about where the Fire Nation troops are going.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This story is set right after the war meeting where Ozai decided Sozin's comet was a great time to burn up the earth kingdom

The meeting ended. Zuko felt _wrong_ on the inside. He was _trying_\- he was trying so _hard_ to be a good prince, a good son, but it all felt so _wrong_.

"Zuko," Ozai said, softly. Zuko turned, looking up towards his father. Ozai motioned for him to stay put. The generals rose, bowed, and exited.

Zuko waited. Azula had slipped out, Zuko wasn't quite sure when. They were alone.

Ozai turned fully towards him. "Zuko," he said, "The former General Iroh will not change his ways. He will not come back to the family. We can't afford the destruction that would ensue should he escape. It could destroy our country. We have scheduled his execution for one week after the eclipse, along with any other high-ranking prisoners we take." He set his hand on Zuko's shoulder. Zuko felt himself stiffen at the contact. "You understand, don't you?"

Zuko was sitting on the ground, not kneeling. His father's hand wasn't burning, it was just _there_. But his eyes were just as cold as they had been at the Agni Kai. Ozai's eyes were always cold, even when Zuko was burning. Not like Uncle. Uncle was warm and kind and- _No. _No Zuko didn't understand but speaking out against things he didn't understand never helped anyone. So Zuko nodded, and bowed, and left. He found himself walking. He didn't know where he was going- but he had to get away somehow.

He came back to himself when he heard Mai call out for him. He was sitting, arms wrapped around his knees, rocking slightly. He wasn't exactly sure how long he'd been on the palace roof- but based on how dark it was it had been a while.

Mai looked… concerned. Her normal blank expression was there, but there were creases between her eyes, her lips slightly more downturned than usual. The expression wasn't big, but it was _there_. She sat down beside him, taking one of his hands in both of hers. The silence wasn't oppressive, but he could tell she was waiting for him to speak.

"They're going to kill Uncle," he said, voice cracking. "They're going to kill him."

He looked at Mai, at the alarm on her face, knew he couldn't let it happen. He'd save Uncle, no matter how much he lost for it.

Father had trusted him. Father trusted him, and Zuko was going to betray him. But it was wrong, so very wrong to kill Uncle.

Uncle was a good person, who helped other people. And Father was trying to burn the world to the ground. Zuko knew people in the earth kingdom, people who would die if Father won. Uncle would stop Ozai. Zuko would be betraying his father. But he couldn't let Uncle die.

Father deserved to know though, why Zuko was leaving. Zuko would tell him- during the eclipse. When his father couldn't burn anything. Then he'd free Uncle.

-…-

He wrote a letter to Mai, telling her all that Uncle had done- telling her he couldn't let Uncle die.

He strapped his dao to his back, placing his crown on Mai's table along with the note. After today- he would be a prince no longer.

—-...—-

Zuko walked into the underground throne room when the sun went dark. He told his father what he was going to do. His father listened.

He started to walk away- then his father spoke of Mother. Despite himself and the voices screaming at him to move- to leave- Zuko listened. Eight minutes can pass quickly.

Zuko felt fire return- he felt cold. Ozai watched the color drain from his face and stood slowly, lazily. Zuko took a step back, edging towards the door. Ozai stepped forward and flames shot from his palm in a steady stream, superheating the metal of the door. Not quite enough to melt it completely, just enough to trap Zuko in the underground throne room. If he'd had time to think Zuko would have hoped that Ozai hadn't just melded the door together- if he had, then the Da Li would have to get them out- and asking Azula for anything was like pulling out teeth.

Zuko didn't have time to think because Ozai was moving, fire roaring from him in a wave. Zuko split it down the middle- dispersing it to either side of himself as Ozai kicked out more flames. Zuko ducked, then slammed a palm forward to send fire back. His fire was pathetic, the weakest he'd produced in years. That did _not_ seem like a good sign.

Ozai smiled. He slowed his barrage. Zuko dodged. He didn't draw his swords, he needed his hands free to keep the fire away from him. Even with all of Zuko's skill though, he knew Ozai was playing with him. Zuko was like a mouse-rat that kept running from the weasel-snake, not realizing it was already dead. Zuko felt his breath growing short- with the door closed and his father's flames eating up the oxygen in the room breathing was _difficult._

The guards had returned and tried to enter the fight, to end it. They, apparently, hadn't noticed that Ozai was enjoying this. It was a game to him. A game that would end with Zuko dead.

Ozai shook his head. "It's bad form to interrupt and Agni Kai," He said, and the guards stayed back. If Zuko had been thinking he might have laughed, his father was making a habit of challenging him to duels without his knowledge.

Flames came down, toward his face. Zuko felt a brief moment of panic before he swept them aside. His left leg caught fire as the fire he'd diverted found something to burn. Zuko gasped, leg failing him as he fell to one knee. Of course he fell on the burnt one. It wasn't near as bad a burn as his face had been- but his mind flashed back all the same.

Ozai shook his head. "What a disappointment." He said, "Iroh was supposed to help you make your bending stronger- but I guess it makes sense. He's a failure, just like you. I was never going to let you save him, and by now he's probably already dead. I sent guards to deal with him while the eclipse lasted." He laughed then, a low, amused sound that was so very, very _wrong_.

Zuko could barely think through the lack of air and the pain- but that cut through. Father had killed Uncle. Father had killed Uncle. Something red and angry and ugly and _dark_ reared its head inside of him.

Ozai raised his hands, moving them in the oh-so-familiar circular motion as lighting crackled between them. Zuko forced himself to his feet as the lightning came. He raised his arm, directing it, in-down- out. Straight towards Ozai. Ozai barely had time to look surprised before it struck him in the chest. He fell, like the burnt and broken remains of one of Azula's dolls.

Zuko stared. Down at his hands, still tingling from the lightning and trembling from the shock. At his father, lying in a crumpled heap on the ground. Zuko was moving. His burnt leg protested- tried to give out- he didn't let it. He walked the few feet between him and his father. The guards didn't stop him- they seemed as shocked as he.

Zuko knelt by his father, two fingers feeling for a pulse. There was none. Ozai's eyes were wide open in shock and pain. Zuko closed them, gently. He was trembling. Had he meant to kill him? He'd heard that uncle was dead and the lightning... could he have _meant_ to kill his father? Could he have _not_?

Someone slammed on the door but couldn't open it. Zuko barely noticed. A guard collapsed. Apparently he wasn't the only one who thought it was hard to breathe in here.

Finally, one of the walls slid open. Azula stepped inside, as poised as ever. Then she saw father. And Zuko. For a moment, she froze. He saw her mask slip, saw pain and fear and rage in her eyes.

She took a step forward. "What happened?" she asked.

"Agni Kai," Zuko found his voice rasping out, "Lightning."

"Hmm." She said, taking another step forward. Zuko couldn't find the will to move. "Then I challenge you too. Right now."

The guards moved further away as she moved. Her kata was perfect, but the flames puttered out just as Zuko's had moments ago. Her eyes widened and she tried over and over again to get her flames to hit him, burn him. Zuko watched her, and something of her panic deadened his own.

He stood again, stepped forward. She froze, staring up at him as he placed his hands on her shoulders. Her breathing was ragged, which was rather strange- her breathe control had been impeccable for years. "Mine's doing the same thing," he said. "I'll figure out what's wrong with it. Give me three months."

She seemed to be searching his face for… something. "You?" she finally asked, "Why would I trust you to find anything?"

"I found the Avatar in three years. Father gave me a lifetime. If anything, I find things ahead of schedule."

Something she saw must have reassured her for she calmed, mask slipping back into place. "I'll hold you to that." She said, "For now, I'm going to take care of the prisoners. You can be Fire Lord until you figure out what's wrong with our bending. Then we'll have our Agni Kai."

She turned, the perfect princess once again, and left the room, her Da Li following. Zuko watched her go. _Uncle. _He thought suddenly, _Uncle. _

He was running then, leg protesting every step. But he had to know. Uncle had to be alright, he_ had_ to be.

…-…

There were bodies scattered in the hall, some frozen, some burnt, some crushed. Some alive, some dead. Some fire nation- some decidedly not. He needed a healer for the living ones. There was blood. So much blood. Zuko searched through them all. Uncle wasn't there.

He stared around him. Uncle wasn't there, but that didn't mean Uncle was alive. He could be dying. He could be dead. He could be alive but injured and Zuko- wouldn't know. Uncle wouldn't try to get word to him, he wouldn't know that Zuko _cared_. Zuko found a guard, hiding in an otherwise empty cell and sent him for a healer, then went back to the hall with the bodies.

Someone was coming. He turned- saw Mai. She was holding a crumpled note in her hand. She stared at him, then the destruction around him. "What happened?" she asked.

"Father… Father sent men to kill Uncle. He got out. He's not here."

Mai hesitated for a fraction of a second, then grabbed his arm. "Come on," she said, "We need to get you out of here. If Ozai finds you… you're dead."

Zuko didn't budge. She looked up at him, exasperation and confusion blurring on her normally blank face. "Mai," he said. "I- I'm Fire Lord now. Azula challenged me but her fire's broke. I'm Fire Lord. I killed him. He told me he'd killed Uncle and he shot lightning at me and I killed him. I killed him." He was babbling, and at some point he'd started crying and he shouldn't cry, he knew that, but he couldn't seem to stop.

Mai stared at him, shock written across her features. Then she wrapped her arms around him. "I'm so sorry," she whispered.

Zuko's walls of shock and denial were breaking down. He couldn't stop himself from leaning into her embrace and crying harder. The guard returned with the healer, and Zuko finally forced himself to move.

Fire Lord Ozai's body was cremated that night.

Zuko was crowned Fire Lord the morning of the next day.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Zuko stood before his people. They were his now. He'd murdered his father, and now they were his. He felt like his tongue was tied up in knots. But he also knew what he _wanted_ to say.

The world wasn't benefitted by the war. The world feared the Fire Nation, hated them, and they, or at least the royal family, deserved it. They had burnt a swath across the world in the name of sharing their prosperity- they weren't. They were just getting people on both sides killed. These people were his now- and he couldn't save them if they kept fighting. War just killed people and if the war was going on his people would be dying, and it would be his fault. He also knew he couldn't tell them this. They weren't ready to hear that the sacrifices they'd been making had been for nothing.

"I am honored to stand before you today," Zuko began, "The Fire Nation has been at war for a hundred years. We defeated" _massacred _"the air nomads. We conquered Ba Sing Se. We lured our enemies into the Caldera itself- and captured some of the greatest threats to the Fire Nation. And now, our people need to have time to rest. It is time for our sons, daughters, fathers, mothers- for our brave soldiers to be called home. The war is over. We won. Now it is time to strengthen ourselves. We begin immediately." He bowed to his people then. It was probably the shortest speech a new Fire Lord had ever given.

For a long moment the entire crowd was silent. Zuko didn't dare look up. The silence stretched. Someone behind him started clapping. _Azula? _Someone else cheered. The entire crowd roared then, cheering for the family that would soon be coming home.

Zuko almost smiled. Azula didn't smile at all. She was considering how hard it would be to get these people to restart the war as soon as she'd gotten her bending back and defeated Zuko in an Agni Kai. Based on how happy they were about their families coming home- it wouldn't be easy.

…-…

Zuko started by requesting the clerks go over the profitability of each colony over the last 100 years. He asked them to check how many soldiers were in each place and which colonies they'd lost men in over the last ten years and how many men each and how much effort it was to get overland troops to the colonies and how much it would cost if they did it by airship instead.

That work was easy. They had the numbers in three days. He then looked at each place and where they went on a map and where the best border- the easiest border would be for the Fire Nation. He was trying to balance what he wanted to give back to the earth kingdom, which places needed to stay in the Fire Nation even in rebellion just because of where they were, and which had become fully part of the Fire Nation long ago. Then the work really began- the work of doing things.

Ba Sing Se was a nightmare.

There were millions of refugees in there- thousands of starving people that the city hadn't bothered to come up with a plan to feed- there wasn't enough food in the city to split it in an equitable way and there definitely weren't enough jobs in the city to support those who could work.

Zuko felt like shouting at someone. He settled for resting his head on his desk and resisting the urge to fall asleep.

"Poor Zuzu," a voice said from above him, "Tired of being Fire Lord already?"

He forced himself to sit up straight, glaring at her. "What in the world inspired you to capture Ba Sing Se? That city is a nightmare full of refugees and seeing as they are part of the Fire Nation we have a responsibility to feed them now."

Azula shrugged. "You want peace don't you?"

Zuko _looked_ at her. She sighed. "Give it back to the Earth Kingdom as a sign of good faith, their bastion of hope returned to them. Should ease negotiations up- if you ever actually get to negotiating with anyone."

Zuko stared at her for a long moment before he felt a grin split his face open. "You are a genius," he breathed. "I could hug you right now."

"Please don't," she said, "Weak or not fire still burns."

Zuko rolled his eyes. "I never would have guessed."

Azula seemed to be waiting for something. He looked at her for a moment longer. _Right. Cure fire bending. Or- strengthen fire bending. _"I haven't found the solution yet." he said. He'd been looking through old scrolls for days. Luckily for him he'd read most of them before, when he was trying to find a way to strengthen his fire bending and impress Father. It hadn't worked, but the information came back to him now.

The bit about the Sun Warriors had been interesting. Apparently, their bending involved a lot more dancing then fire bending today did, and it was extremely powerful. If they could find time to go to the temple, they might find something. That field trip was not exactly the most important thing right now though.

"But I think I might have an idea of where we can find an answer."

Azula raised an eyebrow. "Do tell." She said.

Zuko almost smiled again- strange. "You don't think you'll get to go without me do you?" he asked, "I have a trip planned for two weeks from today. We'll take a day off- go on a field trip- fix our fire- then come back."

Azula sighed. "You know that if you've already planned a trip I can simply figure out where the trip is to from one of the servants and go without you."

Zuko felt tired again suddenly. He always seemed to find a way to give people excuses to leave. He'd been bad at bending so Azulon had ordered his death- which had made Mother leave him behind and never come back. He'd betrayed Uncle so Uncle had to leave him behind to. He'd murdered Father- and so Father had left him behind as well. Azula was the only family member who hadn't abandoned him yet, and even if she was crazy he didn't really want her to go. But he wouldn't- probably couldn't- stop her.

He wanted to yell at her- command her to stay- but he doubted it would work. And he was tired. So instead he tried to smile at her, failed, and got back to work.

…-…

"Aang!" Sokka shouted. "You need to learn fire bending!"

Aang… didn't seem to be listening. Or he was listening and pointedly ignoring. Rude.

Sokka had gotten better at sneak attacks though. He ran up behind Aang, tackling him to the ground. Toph laughed. Aang sighed. "You know I could get you off right?"

Sokka shrugged. "Maybe if you accidentally bent me off a cliff you'd feel bad enough to learn Fire bending." He did let Aang up though. Aang rubbed his shoulder. Sokka didn't feel bad about that, Aang probably deserved it for ignoring him.

"Where am I supposed to learn Fire bending?" Aang asked.

"Jeong Jeong?" Katara suggested.

"Where would we even find him?" Aang asked.

Toph shrugged.

Sokka hesitated for a long moment. "We could ask Master Piandao."

Katara blanched but Toph looked intrigued and Aang looked- resigned.

"Why would Piandao help us find Aang a fire bending teacher?" Katara asked.

"He said knowledge was supposed to be shared through the nations and he didn't turn us in or really attack us and he knew Aang was the Avatar. Does anyone have any better ideas?"

…They didn't.

…-…

If Piandao was surprised by them showing up on his doorstep, he didn't show it. If he was surprised by them asking him about a Fire-bending teacher he didn't twitch.

Piandao was favoring his right arm. It was bandaged. All he'd say about it was "Burn. Not a bad one. Didn't really even stop me from fighting."

Fat invited them in. Piandao asked them to wait. "I might know just the person," he said, "Just broke him out of jail before his execution on the eclipse."

Piandao walked out, leaving them in the courtyard. When he came back, someone was following him. "Uncle!" Toph grinned, waving at him.

General Iroh, the Dragon of the West, waved back.

He wasn't grinning though, he looked- resigned.

…-…

Iroh sat with Aang. He'd started with breathing exercises- Aang had done fine on those. Then he'd tried to get Aang to bend actual fire. That- hadn't been as successful.

"You're scared of fire- aren't you." Iroh asked.

Aang hesitated for a long moment. "The last time I bent fire I burnt Katara."

Iroh looked at him for a moment. "It was an accident wasn't it?"

Aang nodded emphatically. "I would never burn anyone on purpose."

Iroh hesitated for a long moment. "I suppose it's lucky for you that I have some experience teaching students who fear fire." He thought for a moment. "We have a trip to take tomorrow- to show you what fire is truly like. That it doesn't need fear- it needs respect."

"Where are we going?" Aang asked.

Iroh smiled. "It's a secret." Aang sighed, but he didn't yell about it.

Iroh could have cried- because Zuko would have.

…-…

"Fire is life," Aang said, awed. He grinned at Iroh before executing a perfect Fire-bending move and, finally, producing actual fire.

Iroh smiled at him, but he couldn't help but think that this was not the child he'd wanted to have with him on this trip. Iroh smiled- but he couldn't help but think that Zuko would probably _never_ make this trip. And if they won- when they won- Zuko probably wouldn't survive the conflict.

Iroh couldn't survive the loss of another son- could he survive killing one? Even for the world? He didn't know.

…-…

They went back to Piandao's, and they kept training. Iroh threw himself into the teaching because when he was training, he wasn't thinking about what might happen. He wasn't thinking about the fact that they were depending on children to save the world. Wonderful, talented children, but children all the same.

It was a week after the Avatar and his team had made it to Piandao's that the proclamation came- it had come overland instead of by airship because the airships were- apparently- all occupied with troop withdrawal.

Ozai had died during the invasion. Zuko was Fire Lord. The war was over. The Fire Nation had won. Also, Iroh wasn't a traitor anymore. Huh.


	3. Bad things happen in third chapters

Azula hadn't left without him. Zuko was surprised, until he asked her why and she'd said that he hadn't actually told anyone where he was going- which was true. The amount of food he'd commanded packed hadn't helped either because there was a fairly large radius they could get to and back from with that amount of food in a balloon, and it also depended a fair bit on how much overland travel they'd have to be doing.

It made sense.

He'd requisitioned the same one he'd packed to escape with Uncle two weeks earlier. He guessed that he was kind of escaping with a family member anyways, so it fulfilled its purpose.

He left Mai in charge. Ty Lee came with her to wave them goodbye. "Other than keep the palace together- is there anything you need me to do while you're gone?" Mai asked.

Zuko shrugged. "Don't let anyone else land here?" he said. They'd found that there was a good landing stop by the turtle duck ponds which he fully intended to use as the small-balloon-for-the-royal-family-landing-site.

Mai shrugged. "Sure."

She stepped forward, kissing him on the cheek. "Come back safe."

Zuko smiled, nodding. "I'll try my best."

Mai smiled back, slightly, before walking back into the palace. Ty Lee waved at him brightly before springing after her. Azula sighed, loudly, behind him. "You've had the last two weeks to look at Mai. Now it's time to go. Or are we really just here to feed the turtle-ducks?"

Zuko shrugged. "It probably couldn't hurt."

Azula's expression didn't shift.

Zuko joined her in the balloon- and they were off.

…-…

Mai knew that Zuko had been joking when he'd said to make sure no one landed in his spot- but the fact that someone had was troublesome.

"I'm sorry," Mai said, approaching the Sky-bison, "But I can't help but notice that you have landed in the official landing spot of the royal family. I would ask that you remove your bison."

Three people stood. She recognized all of them. The blind earth bender, the water tribe boy, and Zuko's uncle. Mai sighed. Of course Zuko would leave today. Of course.

General Iroh smiled at her. "Well that shouldn't be a problem then. I am a member of the royal family!"

Mai looked at him for a long moment. "Fire Lord Zuko did say you weren't a traitor anymore." She sighed. "Please move the Bison. Fire Lord Zuko will be coming back to land here, but he won't be back for a while. You have plenty of time."

The water tribe boy seemed unhappy. "You mean we come all this way and he isn't even here?"

Mai looked at him for a long moment, then sighed again. "Did you make an appointment?" she asked.

The boy spluttered for a moment. The blind girl laughed and punched him. "She got you there."

General Iroh frowned. "Where is Zuko?" he asked.

Mai shrugged. "He and Azula decided to go on a fieldtrip together."

General Iroh looked incredibly concerned.

Mai rolled her eyes. "They'll be fine. They should be back later today- Zuko couldn't take very much time off anyways."

"Mai," the General said, "How did Zuko end up as Fire lord?"

Mai hesitated for a long moment. "That's his story to tell."

"True." The earth bender said. Neither of her companions seemed to appreciate it.

…-…

They went to ruins- _ruins_ to fix her Fire bending. Azula wanted to burn something. Unfortunately, her fire wasn't hot enough to burn the living things satisfactorily and stone didn't like to burn at all.

Zuko had the audacity to seem _excited_. Azula could burn him, but then he might not help her anymore.

"You brought us to Sun Warrior ruins to fix our Fire Bending." Azula said, studying her nails.

Zuko nodded, still throwing his stupid rocks. "You don't actually know that there is anything here do you."

Zuko turned to her, voice rising. "I don't see _you_ having any better ideas."

Azula shrugged. "You were the one who said you'd find the answer. I made no promises."

Zuko turned completely to her, pausing. "This was how I found the Avatar. I searched random ruins that I researched he might be until I accidentally found him at the South Pole. I've found stupid things before. So just let me do my job!"

He threw another rock and something popped as an entire section of paving disappeared to be replaced by huge spikes. Zuko looked surprised. "The rock thing actually worked." He said.

Azula looked at him for a long moment. "You knew there were traps- so you threw rocks hoping to accidentally set them off?"

Zuko nodded. Azula barely kept herself from sighing. That was _Mai's_ thing.

…-…

"You want us to dance?" Azula asked.

Zuko shrugged. "The Sun Warriors were apparently known for their fire dances."

Azula did sigh then.

…-…

"Don't touch it!"

… He, of course, _grabbed_ it. And they were _both_ stuck in the glop. Apparently, the Sun Warriors were still alive. Strange.

…-…

There were dragons. Real live dragons. Azula should probably try to kill them… but Zuko was Fire Lord now so he probably wanted them _alive_.

They danced as the dragons whirled around them, and then came the flames. They were colorful? Azula didn't- she didn't understand. The dragons weren't teaching them anything- she'd been making blue flames for years- _thank you very much_. How was this supposed to help her get her bending back? She wasn't supposed to be weak- she couldn't be weak- she couldn't _fail_.

She turned- turned to Zuko who would surely be more confused than she was because he was a dum-dum and couldn't get anything right- and he was laughing. Laughing in a light, joyous way she hadn't heard from him since Mom disappeared. He held out his hands, spinning, letting the flames dance across him. He grinned at her- and stopped, flames dissipating.

"Are you alright?" he asked, reaching towards her. She slapped his hand away. "Fine. Let's just get off this mountain."

He nodded, slowly, but didn't stop looking at her- looking like he was actually concerned and actually cared.

The sun warriors surrounded them. Azula let Zuko get ahead, slightly, as their leader told them that they could never leave. And something snapped. Azula found her hands spinning, lightning crackling at her fingertips.

"Azula!?" Zuko yelled, but she wasn't listening to him. She threw her lightning at the leader- and Zuzu, idiot that he was, jumped in front of it.

…-…

Zuko saw Azula breaking. He just… just needed to get her home. They could figure out something. He'd find another way to help fix her.

Then the leader said they couldn't leave and Azula snapped. He saw what was going to happen before it did. The Sun Warriors didn't know how to redirect lightning, no one but Uncle and he knew that. Zuko found himself jumping forward before the lightning left her hands.

He caught it with his left hand. In. Through the stomach. Down. And- and he wasn't grounded. It couldn't _go_ out. The lightning was frying him from the inside and he had- had to keep it away from his heart- he slammed into the ground and directed the lightning _out_.

He curled up, trying to breathe. It hurt- it hurt like his face had hurt after Father had burned him. Except this hurt was inside and- and Uncle wasn't here- Uncle hated him and… Zuko tried to breathe. He thought he saw the dragons again. Strange.

…-…

Azula stared at her brother, lying on the ground. The sun warriors were shouting, but none of them were moving to help him- and- and he needed help. Where was stupid Uncle Fatso? He was supposed to _be here_ when Zuzu needed him. That's what he was for- he'd been there at the Agni Kai- he'd stayed with Zuzu for_ three years_. Why wasn't he here now- when Zuzu was burnt and broken again?

Then the Sun Warriors were moving. They weren't helping Zuzu though- they were attacking _her_. She dodged and spun their flames away but she couldn't really fight back and Zuzu was just… just _laying_ there and why wasn't anyone _helping_ him?

Then the dragons were _there._ The red dragon went to Zuko and the blue one surrounded Azula, blocking her from the Sun Warrior's flames.

Azula was trembling- her breathing ragged as she stared at the dragon. It could kill her- crush her- so easily.

The blue dragon looked at Azula for a long moment, then leaned forward, touching one of its whiskers to Azula's cheek.

_He saved one of mine from his, so I save one of his from mine. We will save him- heal enough of his harm that he may return with you. He loves you. Don't break him further. You don't understand our fire- ask him. He will teach you. And he will not mock you for your lack of understanding._

Azula still didn't understand- but she found her ragged breathing smoothing out. They were helping Zuzu. He was going to be alright.


	4. Chapter 4

Fire surrounded Zuko, but he was not afraid. This fire didn't burn- instead it eased the burning inside of him. It did not consume- it gave.

The fire flared once, then went out. Zuko still ached but the sharp, _blinding_ pain was gone. The red dragon stood in front of him. Zuko forced himself to his feet and bowed to it, ignoring the twinge of pain in his chest as he did so.

_You saved ours- we saved yours. And you. Yours- needs help. She believes that she is a monster, and since the dead one praised monsters she embraced that monstrosity. Fire is life. Teach her to appreciate life for the sake of life and she will learn to build bright fires once more. _

The red dragon nodded to him. Zuko nodded back. As one, the red and blue dragons lifted off once more towards their caves. Zuko found Azula- who had been concealed behind the blue dragon, watching it go with an almost thoughtful expression on her face.

Zuko stepped towards her. Moving hurt. He winced. She glanced over at him and rolled her eyes. She took two large steps forward, placing one of his arms around her shoulders. "Zuzu," she said, "You've always been a dum-dum but jumping in front of a lightning bolt was stupid, even for you. We need to get you to a healer. I can't have you dying on me before you fix my fire."

Zuko nodded. The Sun Warriors let them pass with dark expressions- but none attacked.

Zuko breathed a sigh of relief as soon as they were out of the circle though. He really wished they hadn't landed the recreational-field-trip-escape balloon so far away.

His shirt was rubbing against his chest with every step he took and it hurt worse every time. He kept going though. Azula was supporting him and he certainly wasn't going to let himself give out before she did- lightning damage notwithstanding.

…-…

Azula wanted to burn something. Fuel was still a problem however. Or- more precisely- now that she had something to burn she couldn't get her fire properly hot enough to actually burn it. She'd set Zuko in the corner of the balloon- but it had taken the two of them bending their meager fires together to get this thing off the ground the first time. Now- she was alone, and while Zuko's fire would certainly have been strong enough to get them up alone- hers wasn't. That galled her.

She felt a sudden urge to growl at the balloon, though she it wouldn't help. Then Zuko was standing and she wanted to tell him to get back down because she was fine- she was perfect- but he was already there and at this point it would probably hurt his feelings if she rejected his efforts to help.

She moved aside as he produced the heat to lift the balloon into the air. It was much harder to get it heated up than to keep it hot, and by the time it was hot enough for her to maintain it Zuko was pale- well, paler, and shaking. She told him to go sit down- and he did. That was… probably not a good sign. Zuko never did anything he was supposed to do. She couldn't focus on that much though, she had to maintain the fire in the balloon. Last time they'd been sharing the load. This time she was alone, but that was fine, she could do this.

…-…

She couldn't do this. The balloon was drifting downward and she couldn't get her flames any bigger, and why wasn't this _working_\- Zuko was there again. He told her to sit down. She _looked_ at him. "Would you just sit down already?" He yelled. "You need to rest so you can take over when I get tired!"

That… actually made sense. Azula sat down. At some point Zuko had unbuttoned his shirt- she wondered why until she saw the gigantic, angry red scar that covered his chest. How had the lightning even _done_ that? The shirt had probably been chafing against the scar the whole time they'd walked- and he hadn't said a word. Stubborn fool.

He stayed at it for an hour before she forced him back. He was going to get himself killed by passing out and falling out of the balloon. Azula went back to heating the balloon. Stupid fire. Couldn't it tell she just needed to get home?

Zuko fell asleep in the corner, and Azula couldn't tell if that was a good thing or not. She wasn't a healer.

…-…

Toph felt it when the balloon touched down. She grinned, running over to Sokka's room and grabbing him and Uncle. "They're back," she sang, shaking Sokka awake. Uncle, it seemed, hadn't even fallen asleep yet. He was anxious, worried.

Toph had noticed that the rooms they'd been given were the farthest away from the Fire Lord's landing site in the whole palace, but she could bend the walls. She bent them a corridor straight to the landing site. There were two people- Azula and Zuko. Zuko was standing… oddly. Didn't affect his volume though.

"…I'm fine! It barely aches! I don't need a healer or a stretcher!"

She couldn't hear the reply, still too far away.

"I know what a bad burn feels like and this isn't it! The dragons healed it."

Toph could finally hear the other side of the conversation. "Which is why you couldn't leave your shirt touching it. Because it's all better?" It was obviously Azula but there was something… different about her stance. Less… certain.

Uncle was moving quite a bit faster now- a mixture of relief and a greater dose of anxiety seeming to spur him on.

The three of them burst into the garden and she felt the moment Azula saw them. Azula's heartrate spiked for a moment, then fell back down. "Uncle," she said, "How good to see you again. Watertribe. Earthbender."

Zuko apparently knew how to do that anxious- relieved heartbeat to. He whirled around, nearly falling over in the process. For all that he said he was fine there was definitely something wrong in there.

"Uncle?" Zuko said, his voice going slightly squeaky at the end.

Uncle didn't really seem to care about that. His heartbeat had gone from anxious-relieved to just anxious. "What happened?" Uncle asked, and Toph was impressed by how steady his voice was.

Zuko shifted, gesturing in a way that was probably supposed to reassure Uncle. It did not. "I'm fine!" Zuko insisted. His heart said true, but from the way he was standing he was also obviously _not_. "I jumped in front of a lightning bolt but I'm really bad at planning and didn't really think about how I wouldn't be able to get it out mid-air. But the dragons fixed me up and it barely even aches!"

He'd jumped in front of a lightning bolt. That was… interesting. Uncle's heart didn't seem to know what to do with that. Toph grinned. She had to try to make people this anxious- and Zuko was doing it all on accident. Toph was almost jealous.

…-…

_Uncle was here_. Uncle was here, and he was alive, and Zuko really needed to apologize. Uncle would probably still hate him, but Zuko needed to. He'd betrayed Uncle, and he'd tried to make it right, and he'd failed.

He didn't really want to do it in front of the other two though. Which begged the question- what were they doing _here_? With Uncle? And where was Mai?

Uncle looked like he'd choked on something unpleasant. "You jumped in front of a lightning bolt?" and a second later, "You saw the dragons?' his voice was strangled. Zuko nodded.

Azula stepped up beside Zuko, and her gaze was far to predatory. "I didn't know you had it in you," she said, twirling a piece of her hair with a finger, "Keeping the dragons from Zuko all this time- knowing that you could help him improve his fire bending so very, very easily, and letting him flounder instead. Really, I'm impressed."

_Azula always lies… Except she didn't lie about father. _No. No, Zuko really didn't need to think about father right now. "There are other reasons to not show me the dragons!" he said.

"Like what?" Azula asked, never taking her eyes off of Iroh.

"Maybe we should ask him. Because he's _right there_." Zuko gestured in Uncle's direction. Something in his chest pulled uncomfortably. He winced.

"I was unsure of how your loyalty to Ozai would affect the dragon's inclination to eat you," Uncle said.

Zuko looked pointedly at Azula.

"And you believe him? Just like that?" she asked. She sounded almost amused. "_I _didn't get eaten by the dragons. If they thought I was good enough how dangerous could it really be?"

… She had a point there.

"You almost got eaten though!" Zuko shouted it back because- because.

She looked at him levelly.

"So at best he thought you were as bad as I am. Does that really make you feel better?"

It didn't.

"He didn't say that- you don't have to be bad to not be good _enough_." He'd never been good enough, that was nothing new. So admitting it shouldn't hurt.

Zuko wasn't quite breathing right. He knew that, he knew he should probably fix it, but for all that he'd been fine a few minutes ago his chest was really starting to hurt now.

He tried to raise a hand and rub his head- tried to make the world stop spinning- but it just… kept going. His mouth felt like it was stuffed with cotton. "I think you were right," he said to Azula, "The healer was probably a good idea."

He saw her eyes widen as he started falling but the world was all fuzzy on the edges and everything was going dark. Zuko let unconsciousness take him.

…-…

Azula managed to keep him from bashing his head into the ground- which was rather impressive considering how heavy he'd gotten. When had he gotten so big? She couldn't catch him all the way and settled on lowering him to the ground as gently as she could.

Uncle Fatso was there in an instant and Azula was reminded once more of the Agni Kai. Well, the first one anyways. Uncle studied the angry red burn that marred Zuko's stomach for a long moment before he glanced at her. She didn't know why- it wasn't _her_ fault Zuko had jumped in front of a lightning bolt she'd been aiming at _someone else_.

He gently lifted Zuko into his arms and Azula was suddenly struck by how much he'd changed since she'd captured him. He wasn't fat anymore, wasn't even chubby- she'd have to come up with a new name for him. Annoying.

Zuko's head lulled back. Iroh simply cradled him closer and set off towards the infirmary. Azula followed. So did the other two. What were they even _doing_ here?

…-…

_What are we even doing here?_ Sokka thought. They'd wanted to see what Fire Lord Zuko was planning on doing on Sozin's comet. Wanted to make sure the war was actually over. See what the fire nation's position on the Avatar was now. They'd brought Toph to tell them if Zuko was lying, Iroh to get them in, and Sokka to be properly skeptical.

Iroh loved Zuko and Toph didn't have enough experience with him to be suspicious. Sokka also wanted to find his father. And Suki. And see if anyone here knew how to defeat Combustion Man. When they'd asked Iroh he'd just smiled at them and said he'd handle it. That answer hadn't been what Sokka was looking for.

Now the angry-jerk-with-a-ponytail, who didn't even have a ponytail anymore, was passed out in Iroh's arms and they were taking him to a healer. That new burn was… gnarly. So was the old one.

Maybe he was collecting burn scars. It certainly made him look scary- when he wasn't passed out.

Iroh didn't hesitate, didn't even pause at any of the intersections- which made sense. He'd lived here a long time after all. Sokka glanced to the side, but instead of Toph _Azula_ was there.

Sokka did not yelp. It was a very manly sound that left his throat. Azula smirked. Sokka glared back, turning to his other side. And there was Toph.

"Toph," he said, "Was Zuko lying about anything back there?" He didn't know how that information could be useful- but if he was lying about something Sokka'd feel better knowing what it was so that later he could figure out why.

Toph shook her head, "No. Not that I could tell anyways. Good liars might run in the family."

Azula sounded supremely amused. "Zuzu? Good at lying?" she laughed, and the sound was all… off. "He couldn't lie to save his life." That last was said… softer.

Sokka glanced at her. Mai hadn't answered but…"How'd he end up as Fire Lord anyways?" Sokka asked.

Azula sighed. "I just told you. Zuko can't lie to save his life."

Sokka opened his mouth but Azula spoke before Sokka could ask what that even _meant_. "Father told Zuko he was going to kill Iroh. It was a test of course- to make sure he was still loyal after all his years away. Zuko seemed to be doing well. Then he showed up during the eclipse and told Father that he wouldn't let Iroh die. Father distracted him, kept him from leaving until the eclipse ended. Then he attacked. During the fight the guards tried to intervene but Father told them it was an Agni Kai, making his own murder technically legal. Father decided to gloat- told Zuko Iroh was already dead- that he'd sent guards to kill Iroh during the eclipse when he couldn't defend himself. Apparently he didn't know that Zuko could redirect lightning." Azula shrugged. "Father was dead. I dealt with the prisoners. Zuko ran to Iroh's prison- impressively fast considering the leg- got a healer for the few people in there who were still alive- then got crowned Fire Lord in the morning. Ended the war and cleared Iroh's name a day later."

Sokka blinked. That was _so_ messed up.

Azula had spoken loud enough for Iroh to hear. Sokka wondered if she intended it to be kind or cruel.

Or if she just didn't care.

Sokka sighed. This was not how he'd wanted the trip to go.


	5. Chapter 5

Mai was _not_ happy. She was never happy, but that was besides the point. Finding somewhere else to put the bison had taken forever. Their stalls hadn't exactly been sized to fit ten-ton monsters, and this monster wouldn't consent to being put in anything vaguely resembling a cage anyways.

So she'd been forced to take the stupid thing almost entirely out of the city- the avatar's friends couldn't do it of course, they were too busy waiting for Zuko- not like she'd technically been waiting longer anyways…

Now she was back. Zuko had come back too. Apparently Zuko had been struck by lightning. Her _not-happy_ state became slightly more aggressive.

What had they been _doing?_

…-…

The healers were frankly baffled. Apparently, with the amount of scarring the lightning had caused Zuko really should be dead by now- instead it was like the wound had already been healing for weeks, at least in some places. Other places it looked newly burnt.

The fact that he didn't wake up during the examination was… concerning.

…-…

Zuko woke up slowly, like he was rising through layers of fog. He was greeted by a familiar sight. Uncle. Zuko hesitantly pushed himself up. His chest still ached, but there were bandages on it, tight enough that they didn't rub which was nice.

Uncle looked… different. Harder than the man he'd been with for the past three years.

He still snored the same though, which was a bit of a relief.

Zuko felt… hungry. Ravenous really. He slid off the bed, careful to stay quiet. He wanted to talk to Uncle but he really didn't know what to say. He slid the door open quietly. There were two guards outside, Zuko sent one of them to get food. The man didn't seem happy about the request, but he didn't refuse either.

Zuko closed the door as softly as he'd opened it and crept back to the bed, careful not to wake Uncle up.

He still felt exhausted, whatever the dragons had done to heal him had taken a lot out of him as well. He slipped under the covers and let his eyes close, just for a moment…

He woke up a second time to the door banging open. He started, sitting up and wincing as something inside of him complained at the sharp motion.

Uncle woke up too, and a servant carrying two trays of food came in. The servant placed the food on a small table that sat in between Zuko's bed and Uncle's chair and bowed. "It is an honor to serve you Fire Lord Zuko. Do you require anything else?" she asked.

Zuko shook his head. "No, thank you."

She nodded to him and left the room. Left him alone with Uncle. Zuko swallowed, finally looking over. Uncle was studying him, his face almost impassive. Zuko could see a twinge of worry in it though.

Zuko forced a breath in, then out. He could do this. He looked straight at Uncle. "Uncle," he started, stopped. Looked down. "I'm sorry," he said, "I'm sorry I betrayed you in Ba Sing Se and that I didn't come to get you out of the prison sooner and that I got banished so you had to be away from home for years and that I didn't listen to you at all and…" And Uncle's arms were around him. Zuko had a feeling that Uncle would be holding him a lot tighter if he wasn't worried about Zuko's chest.

Zuko was crying.

"Zuko…" Uncle said, voice soft but pained "I was happy to follow you after your banishment. You stood up for what was right, and I was very proud of you. Even after Ba Sing Se, I was never angry at you. I was sad, because I'd thought you had lost your way."

Zuko felt like something inside of him was cracking. He made a sound that was a mangled version of laughter and sobs. "I don't think I even found my way." He said, "I was going to let you out- I didn't want to betray him and I told him I was going to let you out and then he said you were already dead. That he'd never have let me save you and I killed him. I killed him and he's dead and I don't even know how to be Fire Lord and Azula's fire broke and I'm trying, trying to end the war but I think I'm forgetting more things than I'm remembering and I don't know what to do!"

Uncle was still holding him, gently rubbing Zuko's back. "I'm here now," he said, "And I believe that I can help. I spent a great deal of my life preparing to be Fire Lord after all."

Zuko leaned further into Uncle's embrace, and his laugh was more genuine this time. "That sounds good," he said, and he meant it.

…-…

Iroh sent Sokka and Toph back to retrieve Aang and Katara. The Fire Nation was no longer a danger to the Avatar, and they would need his support to start peace negotiations with the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes.

Neither of them were particularly happy to leave him alone with his family, but he waved their concerns away. He wasn't called the Dragon of the West for nothing.

…-…

Azula was training, but no matter how many times she went through the motions her fire stubbornly refused to burn any brighter.

She growled at the flames, angry at their disobedience. Yelling was more Zuko's thing than hers, but she'd seen his fire. His way seemed to at least _work_.

"Azula!" she heard someone yell. _Zuko? _What was that fool even doing out of bed? Hadn't anyone told him he was supposed to rest after getting hit by lightning? Not that he'd rested much last time either, but that time the lightning hadn't burned him up from the insides.

"What do you need Zuzu?" she asked, carefully studying her fingers and not the way he was walking, far more slumped than usual.

"I'm here to help you with your fire." He said, simply, like it should have been obvious.

She looked at him for a long moment. He wasn't even going to make her _ask? _"Why?" she asked, and she hated the fact that she'd actually let the word out of her mouth.

"I promised to fix your fire, didn't I?" he said, giving her a slightly pained half smile, "And it isn't fixed yet. Don't worry, the dragons gave me some pointers."

He waved at her to follow him, and after a moment, she did.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

Zuko led her to the turtle duck pond.

Azula watched him for a long moment as he sat down, wincing slightly as he took two loaves of bread and holding one out to her.

They were by the turtle-duck ponds. Azula knew he liked it here but_ I'm going to help you fix your fire_ and _I brought you to the turtle ducks and have bread for you to throw at them-_ were two thoughts that didn't click in her mind.

She stared at him for a long moment. "You want me to feed the Turtle-ducks." She said. She made no move to accept the bread. He nodded, and his lips didn't even twitch. He looked completely serious.

"Why do you want me to feed the turtle-ducks?" Azula asked. She didn't like asking questions- at least not like this. She liked knowing the answers before she asked the questions and watching people sweat- she didn't like being… confused.

Zuko still held the bread out towards her, hand unwavering. "The dragons," he said- stopped. Started again. "The dragon's fire was amazing, so many different colors, blending together adding to each other, a tapestry of life. Fire is life. Before, I saw fire as a way to please Father, to make him proud of me. Now Father is gone. He can't be my motivation, and I don't want to find something else to be angry at. Fire is life and to truly appreciate fire you need to be able to truly appreciate life- no matter what that life can and cannot do for you. So, turtle-ducks. You see them as useless, but if you can come to appreciate their life, not as something that has use to you, but just as something that _is_, your fire will grow for it."

Azula took the bread, but the only part of his speech she thought she really understood was that turtle-ducks were useless. She fed them anyways. Fire was worth it.

…-…

Sokka was having a bad day. He'd forgotten to ask Zuko _anything_. Iroh had apparently decided that since Zuko wasn't as bad as he could have been he got a free pass for everything and it was perfectly safe to bring the Avatar back to the Fire Nation. Not only that but he'd decided to stay with Zuko!

Which would actually be understandable, if Iroh was there to make sure Zuko didn't do anything sneaky and set up a trap for them. But Sokka could just tell that wasn't what was going to happen. Iroh was overjoyed that Zuko wasn't "lost" or whatever and would turn a blind eye to anything the man did at this point.

Sokka had gone to be a voice of reason! To be the properly suspicious one! Instead, he was the kind of random one who never even got to talk to Zuko and was flying back to Aang before he knew what he was doing.

It left him with two options, admit that he'd failed or wholeheartedly throw his support behind Zuko and hope it turned out well. Either way was a bit of a gamble, and Sokka preferred better odds.

Sokka was still shouting at himself internally when he saw that Piandao's mansion was on fire.

That… wasn't good.

…-…

Aang was having a bad day. He'd been excited that everyone was going to see Zuko except Katara, he'd have so much time with her! And alone too!

But she hadn't really seemed to want to be alone with him, at least not hanging out. Sure, they'd done some stuff but it was like she couldn't stop training. Or talking about Zuko. Sure- the guy had betrayed them all in Ba Sing Se. It was pretty gnarly. But that didn't mean they had to spend all of their time talking about him!

Swimming was much more relaxing.

Aang sat, simply watching Katara as she did the same waterbending katas over and over and over again. He loved her, and he loved watching her, but he hoped that she'd stop eventually.

Aang sighed again, glancing to the side as he did so and saw something glinting out of the corner of his eye. Something that wasn't supposed to be there. He jumped, the air around him thrusting him higher as the rock he'd been sitting on exploded.

That… wasn't good.

…-…

Azula had left hours ago, saying that she had important things to do with her time and didn't need to feed the stupid turtle-ducks anymore. Zuko had let her go.

Mai had found him shortly after, and they just sat together and talked. It was peaceful here, by the pond. Uncle was taking care of things for the day so that Zuko could heal, and Zuko was alright with that. Uncle had always been there and willing to take care of him if only Zuko would let him.

Before, Zuko hadn't been willing to let anything go. Hadn't been willing to delegate anything. But with father gone- what was the point of trying to be so strong anymore? Of not needing anybody? Sure, Azula probably thought he was weak for accepting help but she was going to challenge him to an Agni Kai as soon as her fire was strong enough anyways, so he didn't really need to fight for her opinion of him.

Something roared in the skies above them. Mai helped Zuko stand and he turned towards the royal family war balloon landing spot. Uncle had convinced him to move the balloon for now, just so that the Avatar and his friends would have a place to land that was close. Zuko had allowed it because he didn't really see himself needing the balloon anytime in the near future.

The first thing he noticed when they jumped down was how scorched they all were. The soot clung to them and their clothes were charred in some places.

That… wasn't good.


	7. Chapter 7

"What happened to you?" Zuko asked before his brain could stop him.

Katara glared at him. "Some crazy guy keeps trying to kill us."

"What does he look like?" Zuko asked, feeling suddenly cold.

Sokka answered. "He got this weird eyeball in the middle of his head that explodes stuff. He's bald and has a metal leg. He doesn't really talk- just explodes things."

"I knew I was forgetting something," Zuko muttered.

Toph turned towards him slightly. "What?" she asked.

"I'll call him off," Zuko said, "Just need a pen. And paper. And money."

Katara's glare had somehow intensified. "How are you going to call him off?" she asked. Her tone was decidedly frosty.

"I kind of hired him a while ago?" Zuko said, "Don't worry though- I'll pay him double to stop. It'll be fine."

"It'll be fine!" Katara was almost shrieking now. "You send an assassin after us and all you can say is it'll be fine!"

"I just said I'll call him off!" Zuko was yelling. He winced. That hurt… something. His burn was acting up again.

"That doesn't make it okay!" Katara shouted.

"I'm sorry alright!" Zuko yelled back, "I just panicked! I didn't want to be banished again- I really didn't want to lose the other half of my face- and that doesn't make it right but I really am trying! I don't know why I'm so bad at being good!"

Katara was opening her mouth to shout again when Toph butted in. "He's telling the truth. Has been the whole time."

"How do you know he isn't just lying like Azula?" Katara said, pointing at him while also pointedly not looking _at_ him. "The whole family is crazy! And didn't he just kill his own dad like two weeks ago?"

Zuko's heart squeezed painfully at the reminder.

Mai had been standing at his side, with his arm slung over her shoulders, letting him lean on her.

Now she stepped forward, away from him. "Their family is crazy." She said, voice characteristically flat. "A lot of crazy crap has happened to all of them. Despite all of that- Zuko turned out pretty good. And he can't lie to save his life."

Her lips twitched up in some semblance of a smile and Zuko found his expression echoing hers. It was times like these that reminded him why he didn't hate Mai.

Toph turned slightly towards Zuko. "Lie about something." She said.

Zuko blinked, glancing at Mai. "I hate turtle-ducks?" he said.

"Continue." Toph said.

"Turtle-ducks are worthless and it's fun to burn them because I can and I have great blue fire and Father always liked me best."

He thought he was doing a pretty good Azula impersonation- but the last part had kind of popped out without him telling it to. If he could glare at the words that came out of his mouth he would have.

Toph nodded at Mai. "You're right- he can't lie to save his life."

It didn't make Katara stop glaring, or Sokka for that matter, but Aang looked almost completely relaxed. Strange fellow.

…-…

Zuko sent a messenger hawk to his assassin, the fastest one he could find. The message was simple-

_Meet me where I hired you first in one week's time. I will pay you double to stop trying to kill the Avatar. My plans have changed._

The assassin would know what it meant, and hopefully this whole mess could be sorted out without too much more trouble.

Uncle had been disappointed when he'd figured out that Zuko had sent and assassin after the Avatar and his friends. He had winced when he realized that Zuko had come to him for advice _before_ deciding that the assassin was the way to go. He hadn't said anything about it after that.

Azula had said, "I didn't know you had it in you. Ruthless."

She'd seemed almost impressed with him, and it probably said something about his mental state that he craved her praise. Anything she praised Father would like too after all, and even though the man was dead, Zuko still wanted…

He wanted something that had never existed. A father that loved him. A noble cause. His father to want him, his father to be proud of him.

The man was dead, but he'd left his mark, and that mark wasn't fading quick enough.

…-…

Iroh resisted the urge to sigh. Katara had been ranting at him for almost an hour now, about how he couldn't trust his nephew, about how he'd sent an assassin after then, about how he'd betrayed them all in Ba Sing Se, about how her mother had died… the list went on.

Iroh listened carefully and didn't interrupt. This was something she needed to get off her chest. Something she needed to be able to work through.

Finally, she paused for breath. "I am sorry for all the harm the Fire Nation has caused you," Iroh began gently. "To lose a mother is a terrible thing indeed. May I tell you a story?"

She wasn't happy about it, but the whole group shifted closer. He told them of his son's death. How almost immediately after the news had arrived Azulon was dead, Ozai was Fire Lord, and Ursa was gone. "I don't know exactly what happened," Iroh said, "But the timing… cannot be a coincidence."

He continued, telling them about a young boy who missed his mother terribly, and a father who didn't care. Then came the war council, and the Agni Kai. Iroh swallowed down bile as he recounted the duel again, if it could even be called a duel.

Aang wasn't the only one who looked horrified at the end of it. Iroh told of their banishment, of Zuko's dreams being bashed time and time again.

He skipped ahead, to when Zuko had come to him. _I'm so confused, I feel like I'm losing my mind. _Iroh had looked away.

And Zuko, in Zuko fashion, had done something rash. "It's not entirely his fault," Iroh said. "I know that much of the blame does lie on him, but… at the same time… the things we learn as children are not easily forgotten."

It wasn't over yet, these children definitely didn't trust Zuko, but all of them were thawing. It would take time, but eventually they would see Zuko as the wonderful person he was. Eventually even _Katara_ couldn't deny that the sun shone.


	8. Chapter 8

A/n: Thank you all so much for the review!

They had a meeting in the morning. Iroh, Azula, Mai, Ty Lee, Katara, Sokka, Aang, Toph and Zuko all in one room and not attempting to fight, kill, maim or capture one another. It was truly unprecedented.

For a long moment an uncomfortable silence reigned. "Tea?" Iroh asked.

Zuko stared at him for a long moment. He hadn't even had breakfast yet and Uncle wanted tea? Well, it _was_ Uncle. "I'll order some." He said, standing and making his way over to the door. The guard doesn't complain about being sent on a tea run, so Zuko figured it was probably okay.

He walked back to the table. Moving still hurt a little bit, he rubbed his chest absently.

"So," Zuko said, "I'm trying to end the war. I've figured out the new borders that would be easiest to maintain for the Fire Nation and would allow for a minimal military presence, but we need the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes to be willing to negotiate for an official end of the war. In an effort to show our desire for peace, we are willing to give Ba Sing Se back to the Earth Kingdom."

Azula's lips twitched at that. "We have several problems. One, we don't have any ambassadors. So we don't really have anyone that can negotiate. Two, no one seems to know where King Kui actually went. We've considered having them elect a leader and that idea seems to be met with cautious acceptance, but it would really be better if we could actually find the king."

"What about Omashu?" Aang asked. "Bumi is a prisoner there and can't they get that city back too?"

Zuko blinked at him. "Bumi took his city back singlehandedly during the eclipse. I don't think you have to worry about that."

Aang grinned at that.

"If you want to negotiate with the Water Tribes then you'll want to talk to Hakoda." Sokka said.

He had a look on his face- one of those I'm-manipulating-you looks that Azula had grown out of. She was much sneakier now.

"The leader of the Southern Water Tribe?" Azula asked, leaning forward slightly. "And I assume Zuko will also want to talk to Suki, leader of the Kyoshi Warriors?"

_Much sneakier_. "I assume that they were involved in the invasion?" Zuko asked.

Apparently that wasn't the right thing to say. Sokka's expression darkened and Katara's became downright murderous. Or- more murderous. Really, it didn't change much. Aang winced and Toph shook her head slightly.

Azula was smiling. That… wasn't good.

Ty Lee spoke, "Suki was one of the Kyoshi warriors we defeated and dressed up like so we could infiltrate Ba Sing Se."

Azula spoke next, "Hakoda was part of the invasion. In fact, I believe that both Suki and Hakoda are at the boiling rock." She tapped a finger against her chin. "Strange," she said, "How things turn out."

Zuko wished, at this point, that he'd paid more attention to what Azula was doing when she was dealing with the prisoners. He'd been a bit preoccupied at the time but still-

Sokka was thinking. He had an idea. That would not end well. "We could get Hakoda and Suki out of the Boiling Rock, legally, today if we left within the next couple of hours," Zuko said, "One condition though."

Sokka was considering. "What condition?" he asked.

"I need to find the Earth King or have the citizens elect one," Zuko said, "And I need Aang to help me make peace with them. Right now they're too disorganized to really mount an offensive, but once we give Ba Sing Se back they will find it easy enough to start fighting again. We want to stop the fighting, the war, the death. The Avatar is a symbol, of hope, of peace, if you were supporting our peaceful negotiations it could go a long way to convincing them that we are actually serious."

All of them looked surprised by that. Except Katara. She looked suspicious. "He's telling the truth." Toph said. "That's actually what he thinks."

Sokka was already standing. "What're we doing here then?" he asked.

He turned to Zuko. "Ready to break my dad out of jail?"

Azula sighed. "Hakoda isn't at the boiling rock yet," she said, "He's still in the palace prisons. He's waiting for transit."

…-…

In the end, Azula led Katara to release her father while Zuko got into the kind-of-royal-war-balloon with Sokka.

The ride was a bit awkward.

Sokka's first girlfriend had turned into the moon. Zuko honestly felt a little bad about that one. If he hadn't tried to capture the Avatar- if he hadn't been so selfish- she might still be alive. That was on him.

Zhao had a hand in it to certainly, but Zuko had had an opportunity to end the man. He could've stopped everything from happening before it had even begun. But he hadn't. He'd chosen mercy.

Was it the wrong choice because Zhao had hurt people, or did Zhao's actions after being spared not play into the morals of sparing him?

Zuko didn't know.

Getting Suki out was easy enough, even if she was still mad at him for burning down her village. It was just another example of how far he'd been willing to go to please his father.

His father was dead now, and you can't please the dead, but Zuko wondered how far that influence still ran.

He still didn't even know if he'd meant to kill the man. He didn't know.

He needed Uncle.


	9. Chapter 9

Meeting with Hakoda wasn't nearly as hard as Zuko thought it would be. Katara and Sokka attended all their meetings, but Zuko guessed it was only fair because Uncle and Azula came every time too.

Hakoda wanted his men back- most of them were captured here too. Those who weren't dead that is.

He wanted to trade. He wanted money for reparations. He wanted a treaty, forbidding Fire Nation ships from entering Water Tribe waters without permission.

Katara wanted vengeance for her mother.

Zuko wanted to stop the fighting. He wanted the war to end and stay ended. He wanted to take good care of his people. He wanted to bring the soldiers home.

He couldn't cave on everything. But he didn't dismiss anything either. He listened. He talked to Uncle, and Azula made her opinions known.

She'd definitely had a good idea about Ba Sing Se. Zuko listened to her.

And the week passed quickly.

…-…

At first, Zuko was only going to go alone. He figured it would be quick, find the assassin, pay the assassin, go back home. No reason to keep everyone else up coming with him.

But apparently Azula had absolutely no qualms about reading other people's mail.

So, Mai, Ty Lee, and Azula were all coming with him to pay the assassin. They would stay out of sight. He would meet the assassin, he would pay the assassin, and they would all go home.

Zuko failed to account for a blind Earthbender who could see with her feet.

They were almost to the side door out of the palace when she walked in, arms folded. "Where are you going?" Toph asked.

Zuko glanced at Azula.

Azula smiled back at him, and motioned for him to go for it. Rude. Everyone knew he couldn't actually lie. "We are going to pay off the assassin." Zuko said.

Azula rolled her eyes, but it wasn't like it was really a secret that he'd hired the man of that he was trying to fire him. Besides, Toph would have figured it out eventually anyways. She could tell when he lied.

Toph's posture actually relaxed at that. "Cool." She said, "I'm coming with."

It wasn't really a problem. She could just hide with the others. Easy enough.

…-…

The assassin was waiting for them. The whole situation felt… wrong. Prickly. Zuko took a deep breath. He'd hired the assassin, now he had to fix his mistake and un hire him.

Zuko took out the money.

He tossed it over to the man. "That's for stopping." He said. "Consider the job I hired you for finished."

The man seemed to be counting the money. He stood still a moment longer, then nodded.

Zuko hesitated, then turned. He resisted the urge to look over his shoulder as he walked away. He just needed to get back to- "Attack!" Someone yelled, and Zuko was moving. He spun towards the assassin as the explosion raced towards him.

Zuko was able to dissipate a great deal of the blast, but it still knocked him backwards off his feet. He gasped as the rough landing tore at the chest wound again, but he didn't really have time to think about it.

His little sister, who's full bending wasn't back yet, was fighting the assassin now. This was a fairly vacant part of town, but there were still people. People who'd be woken up by the explosions, people who could die in them.

"Toph!" Zuko yelled.

She was there, beside him. "I need you to get the people out." He said, "You can feel them can't you?"

She nodded. "Get them away where this fight can't hurt them."

He could tell she wanted to say no, wanted to stay and fight, but she was the only one who could protect the people around them. She nodded sharply.

Ty Lee was beside Azula, trying to get close enough to block chi points. Zuko wasn't even sure if those would work on someone who worked so very differently from any other bender Zuko had ever seen, but he couldn't think about that now.

He joined the fight. Flames grew and spun. Azula was doing much better than she had before- Zuko wondered if feeding the turtle ducks was actually helping, or if it was something else.

Knives flashed, reflecting the fires.

Ty Lee ducked in close, finally managing to get one of the man's arms. It didn't help much- being down an arm didn't stop this man from bending. Another explosions- only this time Ty Lee was too close. She went down- not dead, please help her not be dead- but not well either.

Another knife flew. Zuko stared as it hit the assassin dead center on the eye on his forehead.

The assassin stumbled, shaking his head. He was… he was going to try it anyways. "Get down!" Zuko yelled, hitting the ground himself.

An explosion boomed as thick stone walls surrounded the assassin. Toph.

Zuko breathed a sigh of relief.

He glanced up at the girl. "Remind me to take you everywhere." He said.

Toph grinned.

Azula and Mai were kneeling beside Ty Lee. "How is she?" Zuko asked.

Mai glanced up, looking troubled. "Unconscious, could be a concussion. A bit burnt, nothing too serious."

Zuko breathed a sigh of relief. He glanced back at the dome Toph had built to contain the man's explosion. Why had the man attacked him? It didn't make sense… unless he'd been hired to kill Zuko too.

He really should apologize for sending this guy after them- he was terrifying.

A/N: I usually prefer to do things chronologically... but I'm feeling like I want some fluff with the Water Tribe Family... so I may go a little back in time next chapter and add it.

If you guys hate that idea, so say. I'll probably still write it, but I'll refrain from posting it :)


	10. Chapter 10

Katara followed Azula to the prison her father was held in. She knew she needed to be wary, needed to be cautious, and she didn't forget. She kept an eye on Azula and a hand near her water pouch, just in case.

Then the door was opening and her father was just… there and Katara forgot about being wary for a moment as she rushed into his arms. He was obviously surprised to see her, but he held her tight.

"Katara." He said, releasing her, "What're you doing here?"

"Getting you out of jail." She said, grabbing his hand. Azula sighed from behind her and Hakoda's head jerked up- staring at Azula.

"On orders of Fire Lord Zuko you are released from your cell to participate in peace discussions about the end of the war." Azula wasn't looking at them, instead she seemed to be admiring her nails.

"Mostly dum-dum just feels bad because of his assassin."

Azula flicked some imaginary dirt off one of her shoulders. Katara briefly wondered if the girl ever wore anything other than armor.

"Come on," she said, waving a hand at the two of them. "If you're to participate in peace negotiations you need a bath."

It was only when Katara found a bath waiting in her room that she wondered whether Azula had been talking to her or her father.

…-…

When Sokka came back with his girlfriend in tow the family reunion got bigger. Hugs were exchanged all around.

They talked about the last few weeks.

They let the conversation drift from that, talking about times long past.

They discussed which things they should demand from this new Fire Lord in exchange for the peace both sides desperately wanted.

They talked about what they could bend on, when it came to that, and what they could never concede.

Sokka told Zuko's stories in a hushed voice. It wasn't their secret, certainly none of it was their secret to share, but how could they not?

If they needed to fight Zuko, if he betrayed then again, they needed to know what would make him most vulnerable. A blow to the head would hurt anyone. If Aang was fighting Zuko would putting fire near his face put him out of commission?

Katara had seen people with wounds deep inside before, people who'd flinched at the slightest reminder of what they'd suffered.

That Zuko could even bend flame at all after such a thing was a testament to a strength and tenacity far beyond what most people could call upon. Which wasn't super surprising considering the lengths he'd gone to try to capture Aang, how far and hard he'd chased them across the world.

_So he could get home, _a voice inside of her whispered, and she crushed it.

…-…

When Toph woke Katara in the middle of the night and told her to bring her waterskin she knew that something was wrong. She'd expected a fight, not three fire nation teenagers kneeling beside a fourth, waiting anxiously.

"What is this?" Katara asked, voice frosting when she noticed Zuko. She didn't like the rest of them, but they were better than Zuko. That was the _point._ She'd never liked them. They'd never tried to convince her to. They'd never betrayed her.

"They were calling off the assassin." Toph said, blunt as ever. "He attacked Zuko." Katara felt a small moment of satisfaction. _How does it feel to be betrayed_, she thought, looking at him as he rubbed at his chest, grimacing. "Ty Lee got hurt before we took him down. Can you heal her?"

She could. Katara stepped forward and the others backed away as she got to work.

…-…

"Your bending was much better when you were fighting the assassin," Zuko said, as they watched Katara work.

Which was obvious. Why wouldn't he just ask what he wanted to? Why couldn't he just explain why it had been better? Was it that she had a live target?

Zuko had fallen silent. "Dum-dum," Azula said, and Zuko started.

The fact that he responded to that name spoke a great deal about him. Azula would never respond to something so demeaning.

"What were you thinking about when you were fighting him?" Zuko asked, "What were you fighting for?"

Azula moved to speak and found that she couldn't. She'd… she'd been angry that he'd dared attack Zuko when Zuko was _hers_, and he was hurt, and he couldn't defend himself properly on a good day.

She'd been with Mai and Ty Lee and Zuko, and they'd all fought together. They'd been a team. They'd been together, and it'd felt right. She'd… she'd been trying to _save_ them. It was a strange thought, Azula trying to save anyone, but… she had.

Azula glanced down at Ty Lee. It obviously hadn't worked.

Katara finally sat back. "She'll be alright. The damage wasn't to bad. I'll want to work on her again tomorrow, but she'll be good as new in no time."

The tension in the room eased.

Azula glanced at Zuko, then frowned. He was wavering on his feet. Stupid of him to stand so long, fight so long, while still healing.

Zuko rubbed at his chest, frowning. He let out a sound, something between a groan and a whimper, then his eyes rolled back in his head as he collapsed.

_You really needed to stop doing that,_ Azula thought. _I won't always be there to catch you._

But she was here this time.


	11. Chapter 11

Azula knelt beside Zuko, pressing two fingers against his neck. His pulse was strong. She frowned. He was probably just tired... but she'd seen him do far more in arguably worse conditions and he'd never _collapsed _like that.

Toph was beside them now. "Katara," she said, "Can you check up on him?"

Katara's head snapped towards Toph, expression somewhere between horrified and enraged. She smoothed her expression a second later, taking a step forward.

Azula stood, placing herself between Katara and Zuko. Toph might be able to feel lies, or most lies, through people's heartbeats. (Azula's heart was not a traitor though, so it didn't work on her). Azula could see lies- she knew _people._ And Katara did not want to help Zuko.

"While I commend the thought behind it," Azula said, standing straight and tall while also making sure to seem relaxed, in control, "I can't let you come and kill the Fire Lord. If you did that _Iroh_ might end up in charge."

She still hadn't come up with a new nickname for the man. It was becoming rather annoying. What kind of a name was Iroh anyways? What was with four letter names?

Ozai, Ursa, Iroh, Zuko… Even Aang and Toph.

Azula had five letters… which made her name the same length as Sokka's. No. She had nothing in common with the Water Tribe boy. Perish the thought.

Katara looked affronted. Like she was so used to being treated as an angel that she'd forgotten what it was like to be treated with suspicion. So used to being on the right side that she couldn't comprehend someone who questioned her intentions.

"He doesn't deserve healing," Katara said, voice a low hiss, "But that doesn't make me a monster. I wouldn't kill him, not like this."

True. She wouldn't kill him intentionally… that didn't mean she'd be gentle. Healers didn't always need to be gentle. Still… Healing was a delicate art. It was far to easy to mess up if the healer was tired or angry.

Katara was a healer and a Waterbender. The dragons… they'd been able to heal. With fire.

Azula didn't know quite how they'd done it, but she was a prodigy. She could figure it out. "Your services are not needed here." Azula said, firmly, but also flippantly, like she couldn't care whether Zuko ever got up again. Like his health didn't matter.

It did of course, she needed him to fix her fire. But they didn't need to know that she was broken. They knew she was better than Zuko. Zuko was weak now with his injury, she couldn't afford for them to think she was weak to, especially since Ty Lee had been injured too.

Katara stalked out of the room, muttering about gratitude. "Thank you Katara!" Ty Lee chirped, which was… probably a genuine sentiment knowing Ty Lee. Toph hesitated for a long moment, then plopped herself gracelessly on the ground beside Zuko.

Azula didn't ask her to leave. Never command someone to do something you can't enforce. Toph didn't fear her. Toph wouldn't listen, and the only thing worse than someone who _didn't_ fear her was someone who knew they had no _reason _to fear her.

Firebending comes from the breath.

Azula hesitated for a long moment, then placed her hands on either side of Zuko's head, closing her eyes. She aligned her breath with his.

In. Out. In. Out.

Warmth, radiating out of him with every breath.

All Firebenders were unique- everyone had a slightly _different_ inner flame. Azula had felt Zuko's before… and this was still Zuko… but it was- different. Changing. Mutating.

It was stronger. Much stronger than it had been before.

Fire flickered, flowed, brightened, banked. She felt the rhythm of his. It was growing at a rate that almost outpaced his body's ability to keep up with the changes- like a tree that had so much fruit it was pulling down and breaking the branches.

The dragon's healing hadn't just saved his life. It'd done something… more.

Azula couldn't really use Zuko as a test subject for Fire Healing- with the way his fire was acting it probably wouldn't even be accurate testing. If he was to far off normal than any healing methods she discovered that would work on him might not work on anyone else or vice versa.

No…

But what was she supposed to do then?

There were only two other people who'd been to see the dragons. Aang… and Iroh.

…-…

Iroh wasn't exactly surprised to be woken up around midnight. It had happened before. He'd been a father, then a military commander, then Zuko had woken him up with his nightmares, then they'd been on the run, then he'd been in prison with a sadistic jailer.

He just hadn't expected Mai to be the one to come. Mai looked bored, but then, she always looked like she wanted everyone to know that there were probably so many places she'd rather be than _here_.

Iroh followed her quite a way into a different section of the castle. He found an injured but chipper Ty Lee sitting up and leaning against the wall, and Zuko laying on the floor, breathing slow and even. Toph was sitting by him while Azula's hands were on either side of his head, her eyes closed as she breathed with him.

It might have made a cute picture, might have been something sibling were supposed to do rather than something these siblings seemed to_ actually _do.

Iroh might have thought about that if he wasn't so worried. He rushed forward, kneeling beside Zuko as well.

Azula opened her eyes and, after a moment's hesitation, removed her hands from Zuko as well.

"Feel his fire." Azula said, nodding to the still unconscious Zuko.

Iroh frowned, but did as he was told, and after a moment, he saw what she was saying. His fire was growing to fast for him to sustain. It was a forest fire, burning through all available fuel, heading for its death.

They needed to slow it down, calm it. He had plenty of time to grow- he didn't, couldn't, grow at this rate.

Iroh breathed with Zuko. Azula hesitated for a moment, then joined him.

You did not blow on a forest fire- that would make it grow.

Fire could sometimes be used to combat fire, to create a dead zone in which the fire could not spread, but that was not the point here. They weren't trying to kill Zuko by burning him out.

Not air then, not fire.

Water. Water or… Iroh turned to Toph. Earth.


	12. Who sent that assassin anyways?

"What?" Toph asked as she felt both Iroh and Azula shift slightly towards her.

"His fire is growing to fast- it's trying to consume him." Iroh said, which really didn't sound good. "I can't fix that. If I try I'll most likely kill him."

Really not good. "Katara might be able to help." Azula said, "But she hates him. She might kill him on purpose." She sighed, "That leaves you."

"Me?"

Toph was good. She was the best Eartbender in the whole world. But- healing?

Iroh was talking. "Air feeds flames. Adding more fire to Zuko would be a bad idea. We only have Katara for water, also a bad idea. The two best things for fighting fire are water and earth. For this task, it is important that they can bank flames without destroying them."

All true. "What can I do?" Toph asked. She didn't like this. She didn't like feeling uncertain. She was the best Earthbender in the world. She shouldn't have to feel uncertain. She'd figured out metalbending, how hard could this really be?

"Earth grounds people." Iroh said, speaking slowly, "Solid. Steady. Dependable. Zuko's fire needs to be grounded to a manageable level. People are made of all the elements, this includes Earth.

"For now, I wouldn't suggest you do anything. You're too new at this. But- just try to see if you can find where you would need to begin grounding him."

In other words, Iroh didn't really know enough to say exactly what to do- just enough to give him an idea. Toph could do this. She was the greatest earthbender in the world.

She hesitated for a second, then buried Zuko, all except his head, in the ground. She made sure to leave enough room for him to breathe- put earth too tight around someone and they'd suffocate even if their head was above the ground.

Azula's heart jumped as Zuko went down, though she didn't move so much as an inch. Interesting.

Iroh had a similar reaction, but he just lay his hand back on Zuko's forehead. Well, probably. Her sense wasn't exactly accurate on stuff like that- she'd of felt the pressure of Iroh's hand pushing Zuko's head slightly down on the earth the same if he placed his hand anywhere from Zuko's nose up.

People didn't usually touch other people's noses though. That was just weird.

Toph felt the earth around Zuko. She listened to his heartbeat. Steady, strong, but labored. Like it was bearing some heavy weight.

And now she was supposed to feel inside of him?

Earth coated him. She could feel the scar on his chest. There was something… off about that. It felt like it was heating the earth around it- like that little- well, not so little- scar was a mini furnace.

Iroh had said she needed to bank the flames but not destroy them… Toph pressed closer. She was gentle, but she pressed Earth against the scar, coating it. Not a good idea in normal circumstances in case it got infected- but it was too far along. She hoped.

The earth on his chest just heated up. So- no to that idea.

Still, the fire wasn't technically in the scar. It was inside of him. Which meant she needed to figure out how to sense the Earth that was inside of him.

Toph sat, and, as she had done with metal not so long ago, she listened.

…-…

King Kui was riding his bear into a small town when he heard the deal. _As a show of good faith towards the Earth Kingdom, to help begin peace negotiations for the end of the war, we are returning Ba Sing Se to the Earth Kingdom. The people of Ba Sing Se are electing a temporary leader until the king is found or returns on his own. _

It was signed _Fire Lord Zuko. _

Zuko. Not Ozai. When had Ozai died?

Still- if this message was posted around the whole Earth Kingdom… was it legitimate? Could it be legitimate?

It had to be.

Or maybe it wasn't… he needed to talk to someone.

But who?

…-…

Jeong Jeong was tired. He'd deserted years ago. He'd tried to get out. And now his life was just as defined by war as it ever had been before.

Piandao had contacted him when the assassin had tried to kill the Avatar.

That particular assassin had owed him a debt from back in their war days. When Jeong Jeong had contacted him, he'd come.

A debt needed to be repaid. Jeong Jeong asked him who had tasked him with killing the Avatar. It had been Zuko, the young man who'd betrayed Iroh. Who'd left him to rot in prison.

Iroh had such hopes for the boy. As far as Jeong Jeong could see, they were unfounded.

Zuko had said he was ending the war. It was such a harmful, hopeful little lie. Get everyone to lower their guard so you can sweep in and kill them all the easier.

Jeong Jeong sat and waited for the letter to come. The letter that would say that Fire Lord Zuko was dead.

The letter that would make Iroh to be Fire Lord.

Iroh might not be willing to fight Zuko, he wouldn't have the same compunction against fighting Azula.

Iroh would be Fire Lord. And all would be the way it was meant to be.


	13. Aang gets a letter Jeong Jeong does not

Toph knew what Earth felt like. Steady. Solid. Strong. Dependable and unbendable.

Earth in the Fire Nation was… different.

Volcanoes were earth. Except that they weren't _all the way_ earth. Volcanoes were sleeping pools of fire that _looked_ like earth. Unless one felt deeper. Unless one- like Toph- reached down into the Earth and found something- something that was earth- and also wasn't. Something that _did _bend, that flowed like water, burnt like fire, and still, through it all, _felt _like stone.

The volcanoes Toph had felt were sleeping. They were meant to sleep.

Zuko's insides kind of felt like a volcano. One that was erupting before its time. Particles of earth inside of him that were really _not_ supposed to be erupting were doing it anyways.

Toph couldn't feel the fire, but she could feel the effect.

Toph breathed in, then out. This needed fixed. And she thought she knew how.

But this was more important than metal bending. This was more important than anything she'd ever done before, because this was a person she was messing with. This was Zuko, a real, live person who would die if she did something wrong.

He'd also probably die if they did nothing.

Toph wished Katara was here, but if Iroh didn't trust Katara with Zuko's safety he probably had a reason.

Still. Maybe- maybe Toph didn't have to tame to fire all at once. Maybe she could try just a small section of the prematurely erupting volcanoes- see if she could get them to calm- to cool- to lie dormant without going out completely.

Earthbending did not come from the breath, but she matched her breathing with Zuko's anyways. It helped.

…-…

Sokka had been sleeping. He'd been sleeping, and Hakoda had been just a room away, and Suki was here too- and everything felt like it was going right because prisoners were going to be released soon and he'd asked Toph and Zuko_ hadn't been lying. _

He hadn't been lying about wanting peace or seeking peace or giving back Ba Sing Se or _any _of it.

Everything had been pretty good.

But now Katara was stomping into his room and the sun wasn't even up yet and he really wanted to go back to sleep.

"Katara?" he asked. "What's wrong?"

"They don't trust me!" Katara said, gesturing wildly. "I healed Ty Lee because they asked me to and because she needed it. Then Zuko falls over and they won't let me go near him! Azula thought I was going to hurt him!"

Sokka blinked, trying to get the sleep out of his eyes. "Were you?" he asked. He seemed to remember her going on, in some length, about how angry she was at the fellow for his betrayal in Ba Sing Se.

Sokka didn't mind him so much. They'd gotten Suki out of the Boiling Rock together. That was good enough for him.

"No!" Katara said, "He needed help! I wasn't going to hurt him! Even if he'd deserve it."

The last part was said in a mutter, but Sokka could see why the still unnamed _they_ didn't trust her with Zuko's health. Not that he'd say that out loud. He had some self-preservation instincts after all. "Is he going to be alright?" Sokka asked, and that really wasn't what he was expecting to come out of his mouth.

Apparently, it was the wrong side of morning for sarcasm.

Katara growled. Literally. "I don't know," she said, "They wouldn't let me look at him."

"Would it make you feel better if I went to check on him?" Sokka asked, finally managing to convince himself to sit up.

These beds were really rather comfy compared to what they usually slept on. It was almost uncomfortably comfy- but Sokka was _here_ and these beds were _available,_ and he was going to take advantage of them. So there.

…-…

Iroh had said to get up with the sun. Aang had listened. Kind of. He'd let Iroh get him up with the sun anyways.

But Iroh had seemed so happy to find Zuko and also so drained and Aang thought he could do something nice for Iroh and try to get up on his own. And now Aang was just sitting here, waiting, because Iroh was supposed to be teaching him but Iroh wasn't there.

Aang hesitated for a long moment, then closed his eyes, flexing his toes and planting his feet more firmly on the ground. He wasn't near as good at this as Toph but-

He could feel the Earth. He could feel the palace. He could feel people- so many people inside- going about their lives. He could feel farther than that if he wanted to- but he didn't. Not really.

Mostly he wanted to find his Fire Bending Instructor.

Aang was jolted out of it when a Messenger Hawk landed on his head. Aang blinked.

Then he reached up, letting the hawk land on his arm rather than his head and taking the scroll.

The message on it was simple.

_Avatar Aang, _

_Is it true? Does the Fire Nation truly wish for peace? Should I go back and try to reclaim Ba Sing Se? Is it a lie? Do they just want to capture me?_

_I feel very confused. I don't know who to turn to. It almost makes me wish Long Feng were here, though the man was a traitor. _

_King Kuei_

Aang blinked. That one was easy.

He wrote on the back of Kuei's note.

_King Kuei,_

_Fire Lord Zuko is trying to make peace. He's already released a whole lot of prisoners and is negotiating with the Southern Water Tribe. You should go and get Ba Sing Se back. _

_Avatar Aang_

Aang smiled as he watched the bird fly away. Maybe waking up this early did have some benefits.

…-…

Jeong Jeong watched, and he waited.

No word came. 


	14. Everyone has a headache

Iroh got the whole story of their "adventure" from Azula.

He couldn't help but frown, knowing that Zuko hadn't told Iroh what he was doing. Or at least that he was doing it tonight.

Iroh could have- _should_ have- been there to protect Zuko.

He'd been asleep instead.

Still- this was more than a bit concerning.

Someone had hired that assassin to go after Zuko- someone who either had a lot of money or a lot of connections. _Or both._

It would also have to be someone from the Fire Nation. This particular assassin didn't accept jobs from foreigners, or even the colonies.

Iroh watched Toph frown as the Earth seemed to shiver around Zuko. He shook his head slightly. He trusted Toph- she would be careful with Zuko.

Iroh hated leaving, even for a moment, but he stood, moving to the door. It didn't take long for him to find a servant to bring his things.

He needed to write two letters. One to Piandao. One to Jeong Jeong.

He would find out who was trying to kill Zuko- and he would stop them. By any means necessary.

…-…

It was so easy to crush the little flames. Toph knew that she could crush them all if she wanted to- but she didn't. She didn't know Zuko well. They weren't friends- but she had the feeling that they could be. She felt like she could understand him- at least a bit. Understand how he worked, and, by extension, how his bending worked.

Too much earth smothered the flames.

Too little did nothing.

It was maddening, having to add Earth to the flames by such tiny increments.

Still, it was Zuko. A person whose life was on the line. She needed to be careful.

And, finally, when she really needed to find some sort of Earth Kingdom fight club and pound out her frustration- she found it.

The fire was still there- still burning strong- but it was no longer seeking to consume- to grow bigger and bigger and never stop.

She needed to do this now- to do it before someone interrupted her. Do it before she forgot the correct measurement- before she forgot how. She had to be careful- very careful. She needed to bank all the tiny fires before they burnt him up while making sure not to smother him.

It was incredibly tedious work- but she did it anyways.

…-…

Aang had finally found Toph- and Iroh had been with her. He walked cheerfully down the hallway. He was already doing what he was supposed to be doing- promoting peace, helping people.

He was so glad that Ozai was gone- that the whole mess with Ozai and killing was over with. Aang didn't think he'd have been able to kill Ozai. He just couldn't imagine himself doing something like that.

When he walked into the room he hadn't expected to find Iroh, Azula, Toph, Mai, and Ty Lee sitting around in various positiongs with Zuko buried under some rocks Toph seemed to be working on.

Seismic sense was really supposed to warm him about things like this. Of course… he'd just been trying to find Iroh and hadn't really looked past that once he'd seen the man.

Aang did what he did best. He waved. "Hi!" he said. He made sure to smile.

…-…

Sokka wasn't sure if he was supposed to be surprised anymore.

He kind of wondered why Toph had the Fire Lord tapped under a pile of rocks…

Mostly though, he wondered when Aang and Ty Lee had managed to get so friendly.

Iroh seemed to be writing some sort of letter.

Sokka wondered what it was about for a long moment, then decided that he was too tired to do detective work right now.

Which… why was Aang here anyways?

…-…

Jeong Jeong read the letter once. Then again.

It was a full explanation of everything that had happened since Iroh had left the capital, only to willingly return a week later.

Zuko had killed his father- not as an attempt to gain power- but as an attempt to get revenge for Iroh's supposed execution.

Zuko was actually interested in peace and had been having peace talks with the Avatar.

Zuko planned to return Ba Sing Se to the Earth Kingdom as a gesture of good will.

Jeong Jeong read the letter, his bushy eyebrows rising as he took it in.

How could Iroh- a Grand Master of the White Lotus- have been taken in a ploy like this? Of course- some people were really very good at acting… Zuko could be one of them. It would make the eventual betrayal so much harder to handle.

There was only one thing Jeong Jeong could do in such circumstances.

He was a fugitive. He couldn't go to the capital himself- but Piandao- the man who'd trained Zuko- could.

Jeong Jeong would find King Kuei- and he would keep the man alive to rule Ba Sing Se once more.

…-…

Piandao had two letters.

Two letters from men he admired and trusted.

One from a concerned Uncle trying to keep his nephew's alive.

The other from a concerned man trying to save his friend's life.

Both unknowingly at cross purposes. Both still trusting each other.

This could be… complicated.

Actually- this was already complicated.

Piandao briefly considered setting both letters on fire.

There was a perfectly good candle with a very nice flame on it just a hands width away. It would be so easy. So very, very easy.

Piandao sighed. He went to prepared for his journey to the capital instead.


	15. Jeong Jeong is not impressed with you

Piandao arrived at the capitol a week later. He forgave himself for how long it'd taken- after all, most people didn't have a flying bison. Or an air balloon.

Iroh had apparently already passed his name and likeness to the guards at the gates, so he was let into the palace proper with very little fuss. A passing servant pointed out when he could find the new Fire Lord.

Piandao found Zuko sitting by Azula as they fed turtle ducks together.

Piandao blinked. That certainly wasn't something he'd ever expected to see.

"This isn't working brother dear," Azula said, and the impatience in her voice was clear, for all that she'd obviously been trying to hide it. This must really be bothering her for her to lose control like that.

And for her to not notice him- she was usually very good at things like that. Zuko too in all honesty- the boy wouldn't have survived this long if he'd been bad at looking out for danger.

"Why Azula," Zuko said, smiling at her, "Did you really expect to learn all of the secrets of Fire Bending in a single day?"

She glared at him. "It has been weeks," she said, voice nearly a hiss. "And you learned it in a day."

Zuko's smile faded. He reached towards Azula and almost took her hand, then seemed to think better of the gesture. "It was actually a lot longer than a day," he offered, voice softer now. "Uncle had been hinting at it for all the years we'd been together- seeing the dragons just made it all… click. It fit into place and I knew what he'd been talking about."

Azula did not seem comforted. "Please tell me you can do better that _Iroh_." There was a hint of genuine fear in her voice, a pleading quality to it that contradicted everything Piandao had ever seen or heard from the girl before.

Azula was always infuriatingly blank faced. She was controlled. She was also a sociopath. She did not empathize with other people or their struggles. She understood people only insomuch as it pertained to making them listen to her. There was always an air of frenetic energy around her- she was being pushed to do better, to be better all the time.

Here she was nearly desperate, nearly pleading- but the desperate edge to all of her actions was gone.

Just like Ozai was gone.

It could not be a coincidence.

Piandao knew Zuko- had known the boy for years. He knew Zuko was no mastermind- he'd made no plot to take over the Fire Nation. Zuko wasn't fooling the world into believing he wanted peace.

This- this relationship with his sister- just confirmed what Piandao had already known. Zuko wanted peace.

Zuko seemed to come to a decision after a fair amount of mental debate. He took his sisters hand. Azula almost seemed to stiffen, but she did not pull away. He squeezed gently. "We will fix your fire Azula," he said, "No matter what it takes. I will never stop trying to help you."

Azula didn't react, didn't speak- but she also didn't pull her hand away.

…-…

Iroh watched Zuko bend and felt more than mildly impressed. Zuko had been powerful before- all the Imperial Firebenders were, though Zuko had never quite matched up to the rest of the family in terms of skill.

Still- this was a new level of power. An almost unprecedented amount.

What the dragons had done to Zuko in healing him had nearly killed him.

But it'd also created this- whatever this was. Aang still had more power- but it was closer than Iroh would have expected such a contest to be.

If it'd been anyone but Zuko it would have scared him. As it was, Iroh allowed himself to take comfort in the fact that anyone trying to kill Zuko now would have a much harder time of it.

…-…

Jeong Jeong was mildly offended at how easy it was to find King Kuei. It had taken him a week. A week. Had the man no sense of self-preservation? Was he trying to be killed before he could force the Fire Nation to actually give him his city back?

And the man was whistling. And riding a bear. And his clothes…

Actually, that was probably smart. Even someone who knew what they were looking for would have problems believing that this was the Earth King.

"King Kuei," Jeong Jeong said as he stepped out of the woods several feet in front of the man. He didn't bother softening his voice or moderating his tone. He didn't soften himself for other people. He was who he was. He would not give into the pressure of being someone else again.

The King jumped and nearly fell off of his bear. Jeong Jeong sighed.

"Who are you?" The King asked, eyes narrowed.

"I am Jeong Jeong," he said, "I have come to escort you to Ba Sing Se and help make sure you can peacefully," or not so peacefully, "Retake your city."

The King relaxed immediately. "So Aang sent you then! He said that it wasn't a trap, and I believed him of course, still it was very kind of him to send support. Be sure to tell him I said so!"

Kuei was smiling at him and Jeong Jeong suddenly felt very, very old.

This boy- for he was truly a boy despite his actual age- this boy needed _so_ much help. He was much too naïve, much to trusting. If he kept going that way he'd get himself killed.

And Aang- telling the man it wasn't a trap- how foolish was the boy?

Jeong Jeong suddenly remembered the moment when he'd refused the boy lessons and Roku had swept into Aang's shoes.

Jeong Jeong still couldn't comprehend any possibly good that may have come from his lessons- the boy had apparently managed to burn down a fair number of Zhao's boats…

But that didn't explain anything. Not really. Why had the spirits wanted him to teach Aang Fire Bending?

But Ozai was dead now- they were so close. And if Jeong Jeong had somehow contributed to that… well. If Aang- and through him Roku- thought this wasn't a trap… who was Jeong Jeong to declare that they were wrong?


	16. Tis the end

Chapter Sixteen

Piandao felt as though his heart was being split in two. The boy he'd trained was in danger because of one of Piandao's best friends.

What was he supposed to do?

Jeong Jeong- Piandao couldn't see him stopping his attempts on Zuko's life.

And- though the first one had not been successful- who was to say that the next one would not be?

And anyone could see how good Zuko was for the Fire Nation. The people loved him.

Really, there was only one choice.

"Iroh?" Piandao said, "Please. I need to talk to you."

…-…

Iroh forced himself to listen to Piandao and to read the entire letter Jeong Jeong had sent.

He read and forced his fire to remain inside. It wanted to burst out- to destroy… something- preferably Jeong Jeong- how dare the man- how _dare_ he harm Zuko?

Iroh breathed. In, hold, out. And again.

Jeong Jeong had tried to kill Zuko.

And Iroh would not allow him to try again.

He folded the note carefully. "It looks as though I am headed back to Ba Sing Se." Iroh said.

The letter started smoking in his hands.

…-…

Azula still didn't understand the turtle ducks.

She studied them carefully.

Zuko thought that they were cute.

The cook thought that they were good for cooking- though Zuko wouldn't allow them to be on the menu-

Father had delighted in putting them on the menu- especially right after Mother had disappeared…

The turtle ducks ate old bread. But was that useful?

Couldn't people just eat the bread when it was new?

They kept the pool clean… that was probably helpful… Maybe?

But what was the point of the pool?

No one was actually able to drink out of it- because of the turtle ducks- maybe it watered the plants…

But what were the plants for? Shade?

_Fire is Life. _Azula remembered those words- felt as though they were branded into her mind- like Father's hand on Zuko's face. Those words… they obviously meant something to Zuko. He understood them- he _knew_ them. But he couldn't explain it to her. When he tried… it generally just ended in a shouting match.

Azula sighed.

And then threw another piece of bread at the turtle ducks.

…-….

"I don't know what else I can do." Zuko said. He was sitting on the roof again with his head between his knees.

Mai sat down next to him. She rested her hand against Zuko's neck and he felt himself relax slightly.

"Azula?" Mai asked.

Zuko nodded. "He fire was a lot better when fighting the assassin- but since then it has gone back to how it was before. And- trying to fight her doesn't work. It's not the same reaction. She's brilliant- she can work around her weakness and still win when she really probably shouldn't be able to- but that's not fixing it."

Mai hummed thoughtfully.

"She's getting really tired of the turtle ducks," Zuko said, "I'm afraid she'll start setting them on fire again."

"She won't." Mai said softly.

Zuko lifted his head finally, turning towards Mai.

"How do you know?" he asked.

Mai's lips quirked into her almost-smile. "Because she knows how much you love them."

…-…

Kuei wasn't sure if he'd ever expected to see Ba Sing Se again. He'd only ever seen the city from the outside once. But seeing it again… he felt a lump in his throat.

He was back. He was home.

Jeong Jeong rode on his right and Kuei could see his eyes flicking from side to side. He was tense, as though expecting an attack.

Kuei caught his eye. "It'll be fine." He said, "Aang said so."

Jeong Jeong looked like he wasn't sure what to do with his face- it settled into an expression that was somewhat bemused.

Jeong Jeong was a quiet person- but also an intense one.

Kuei liked him.

The gates opened for them, and the Fire Nation troops welcomed Kuei home.

His people gathered on the streets, watching him with something like hope on their faces.

Kuei had run- had left them. But now he was here. And he would never abandon them again.

...-...

Aang glanced at Ty Lee. "This is a great idea." He said, and she nodded, grinning at him.

Aang was the Avatar- which meant he really hadn't needed to pay for much. And the stuff they had paid for… well. Sokka and Katara had taken care of that. Or Toph.

But this was a bet. Whoever won the most money by the end of the day- won.

Aang grabbed Ty Lee and shoved up. Air came around them, under them, blasting them up and over the outer walls and into the main city.

And then the _real_ act began.

…-…

Aang watched as Ty Lee walked down the street on her hands, then flipped herself backwards onto her feet.

People clapped. She was really amazing.

But Aang still bet he could beat her. He went to a different quadrant of the city. Ty Lee had started her act with something amazing… he should too.

Except- instead of cheering for him- people started screaming. And running away. Or attacking.

Aang couldn't help but realize he wasn't earning any money at all.

…-…

Zuko was almost glad when the guards finally interrupted the meeting. It was important of course- soldiers and citizens both needed food- and figuring out where to get it from was necessary- but couldn't these people just get to the point?

How many times did they have to say that they supported him taking down the war- or that they were so glad Uncle had been pardoned- or that they were just wondering when he would be back? And where had he gone anyways?

"What is it?" Zuko asked, half standing.

"Chaos!" the guard said, "On the streets. The Avatar- the Avatar is out there- and he's- I don't even know but people are running- stampeding really and…"

And that wasn't good.

…-…

Katara gaped at Zuko for a long moment. "Aang accidentally started a riot?"

"More like a panic- but yes. We need to get him out before we can get everyone calmed down. I don't really want to send the army in- that would probably get more people killed- but the Home guard- we're sending them in to put out the fires at least…"

"I can help with that." Katara said and Zuko nodded.

"I'll find Aang," Sokka said, "I'll take Appa."

"I'll be going with you," two voices said at exactly the same time, though in very different tones.

Suki- and Azula. "I'm finding Ty Lee." Azula said, "She seems to have gone missing."

Sokka looked between the two of them, but he couldn't really refuse Azula.

Katara watched him rub his head and almost felt sorry for him.

…-…

Aang had not meant for this to happen. Chasing after people and telling them he wasn't there to hurt them- and that they could stop running- made it worse.

Standing in place didn't work either because someone always came to challenge him, to save the rest of everyone from him.

They kept starting things on fire. And if Aang tried to put it out they'd throw more fire at him- which wasn't good.

Aang was nearly in tears by the time Sokka finally found him.

They found Ty Lee a few minutes later- in a part of the city unaffected by the panic- making very good money on a street corner.

…-…

Azula could feel the fire- though not as brightly as she had before.

It was power. She needed it- she needed to be good at it- to… to please Father.

That'd been her purpose for so long- to be his equal. His weapon. His tool. To do what he needed her to do- to earn his smiles and his praise and his time.

And now he was gone.

She looked at the fire once more. _Fire is life. _Zuko had said it- Zuko who never demanded anything of her. Who gave her time and advice and smiles free of charge.

Who tried to protect her.

And in that moment- she wanted to protect him.

She wanted to protect Zuko.

It was a strange thought- a strange feeling.

She _wanted_ to protect him.

She felt her fire flare inside of her.

She wanted to protect him. That meant protecting the things he loved. It meant protecting Mai and Iroh and his nation- and even his little turtle ducks.

Her fire flared brighter and she could _feel_ it again. It was… different than it had been before- but it seemed to more powerful for it. Azula grinned.

…-…

Jeong Jeong had not expected this.

Kuei sat on his throne. Jeong Jeong stood to the right of the throne. He wasn't sure exactly how it'd happened but he'd apparently been appointed as some sort of bodyguard.

Jeong Jeong knew that the king's councilors couldn't be happy about it- he'd seen them eyeing him- but in this Kuei stayed firm. He did not bend. Jeong Jeong was staying.

Jeong Jeong hadn't thought of fire as a guard in… years. For so long fire had been a consuming force- something that devoured and destroyed and hurt.

It was not, to him, a light in the darkness.

But- that's what Kuei saw him as.

And it was almost beautiful.

…-…

Iroh requested an audience with the Earth King.

He was told it'd take two months.

He replied that he was the Dragon of the West.

He was let in a day later.

He'd had time to visit his tea shop. It was in good working condition… but he couldn't keep it. Zuko needed him more.

Perhaps he would be able to come back… someday.

The doors clicked shut behind Iroh.

Iroh bowed to King Kuei, a slight bow, as one might do to an equal. "King Kuei," he said, "I thank you for making time for me."

Kuei nodded. "Jeong Jeong," Iroh said, "You tried to kill my nephew."

Jeong Jeong paled at that. "You did not know the whole truth of the situation." Iroh said, "But that is no excuse. He is sixteen. He is a child still, and you tried to kill him.

"I can see your point, I can understand your motivations, but Piandao agrees with me- Zuko is no threat.

"To keep you from trying again, I promise that if Zuko is killed Azula will be appointed Fire Lord, not me. Also, should Zuko die while I still live and I find that death is in any way connected to you- I will hunt you to my dying breath. Are we understood?"

Kuei was gaping at him, mouth opening and closing while no sound emerged- but Iroh had eyes only for Jeong Jeong.

Jeong Jeong nodded, once, and sharply. Iroh nodded back.

Then he bowed again to the King, thanked him for his hospitality, and began the journey back to the Fire Nation.

Iroh had to admit- he really loved war balloons.

...-...

Azula made sure everything was perfect.

She waited for the perfect time in a get-rid-of-the-war-meeting, declared that Zuko had fixed her fire, and promptly challenged him to an Agni Kai.

He seemed rather surprised, though he accepted of course. How could he not?

…-…

Iroh heard the murmurs as soon as he got back.

_Agni Kai,_ they said. Agni Kai.

And as he ran to the stadium, he prayed to all the spirits that it wouldn't happen again. He would not be too late again.

…-…

Zuko had really been hoping that Azula would get over this. But she'd challenged him to an Agni Kai, just as she'd promised she would. He couldn't really fault her on that.

He knelt on his side of the field, and she knelt on hers. At the signal, he stood, turning.

But she didn't attack. Zuko blinked as Azula smiled at him, and then she knelt.

Zuko had been ready to fight, but as Azula knelt he lowered his arms. He glanced around, seeing if he could figure out who she was kneeling too.

"Azula?" he asked, "Are you alright?"

The stands, which had been loud and demanding moments ago were silent as a grave now.

"I surrender," Azula said, "I hear that this is the way to do it."

Zuko wasn't quite sure if she was mocking him or not. That day was probably his worst memory ever- that or the day his mother had left… And calling his mind back to it was… cruel.

Then again- she wasn't fighting him. And this was Azula. She was probably trying to be nice.

Zuko coughed. "I accept your surrender then," he said.

He wondered why she'd challenged him, if only to give in moment later.

He walked over to her, and held out a hand. She took it and stood.

In the stands there was silence a moment longer. Then Uncle began clapping. Aang, Toph, Sokka and Katara joined in soon after, then the entire stadium was clapping.

Azula smiled at him. "And now they all know how much better you are than Ozai," she said.

Zuko still would have preferred not to go through the anxiety of not knowing- of thinking he'd have to fight her… but watching the cheering crowd he thought, _This works too. _

A/N: And that's the end. Thanks for reading!

If you enjoyed the story- leave a smiley face.

If you didn't- why did you read this far?

:)


End file.
